A UNION has threatened legal action against Oxford Brookes University because members claim it deducted pay from staff who took part in a strike.

The University and College Union (UCU) – which has 300 members at the university – says lecturers were told they will lose a full day’s pay despite only walking out for two hours.

About 60 teaching research staff took part in three two-hour strikes in January and February over the lack of staff pay rises – losing a full day’s pay each time.

There were also three full-day strikes.

The dispute was resolved at the start of this month when the union’s members voted to accept a two per cent pay increase.

The UCU’s general secretary Sally Hunt has written to Oxford Brookes vice-chancellor Prof Janet Beer, asking the university to reconsider its position.

South West regional officer Nick Varney said: “We’re very clear there is a legal challenge here because it was a two-hour strike and we have evidence at Oxford Brookes where staff went back to work, which we instructed them to.